No Guts
The reason George Bush won’t make any serious changes in his approach to Iraq or anything else foreign or domestic is because he doesn’t have the courage to admit that he’s made a mistake. It takes real strength to acknowledge you’re wrong. He doesn’t have that kind of strength. He doesn’t have the guts.
He can talk tough, or at least say the words. But even with his tough talk, bluster, “I’ll get ‘em dead or alive” approach he isn’t convincing. Why? Because he doesn’t have the strength of character to convince the listener that he means it, that he can back up his bully pulpit with action. He’s a faux bully. He doesn’t have what it takes to really bully. He doesn’t have the guts.
He’s not dumb, so he shouldn’t be underestimated. He’s street smart from a distance. That is, he can tell others what to do, especially when the task is inconvenient or unpleasant. But don’t expect him to step up and do it. He doesn’t have the guts.
He doesn’t have the guts to be compassionate. Is he believable when he says he feels for our soldiers and their families? No. Is he believable when he expresses concern for the downtrodden or underprivileged? No. Is he believable when he struts his strut – coming onto a stage, reviewing the troops, heading out to his helicopter? No. He doesn’t have the guts to be comfortable in his own skin.
He’s now saying that so long as he is President we won’t lose in Iraq. Which means he’ll hand the mess over to the next administration and then claim they did the losing. It’s a transparent ploy that some people will buy into. Yet, I’m convinced he honestly believes what he says. He can’t cop to the real truth because he has so deluded himself into believing an alternative truth, one that is impermeable. He doesn’t have the guts to face the real truth.
Finally, God is on his side, he says. He is doing God’s work. Since we’re not in on his private conversations with God we have to take his word for it. Since we don’t have access to all the secret information that flows to him, from God, the Pentagon, the CIA, wherever, we should take his word for it. Do we have the guts not to believe him? The answer today is a resounding ‘yes.’ Regrettably, the answer when it really counted was ‘no.’ Shame on us for not having the guts.
He can talk tough, or at least say the words. But even with his tough talk, bluster, “I’ll get ‘em dead or alive” approach he isn’t convincing. Why? Because he doesn’t have the strength of character to convince the listener that he means it, that he can back up his bully pulpit with action. He’s a faux bully. He doesn’t have what it takes to really bully. He doesn’t have the guts.
He’s not dumb, so he shouldn’t be underestimated. He’s street smart from a distance. That is, he can tell others what to do, especially when the task is inconvenient or unpleasant. But don’t expect him to step up and do it. He doesn’t have the guts.
He doesn’t have the guts to be compassionate. Is he believable when he says he feels for our soldiers and their families? No. Is he believable when he expresses concern for the downtrodden or underprivileged? No. Is he believable when he struts his strut – coming onto a stage, reviewing the troops, heading out to his helicopter? No. He doesn’t have the guts to be comfortable in his own skin.
He’s now saying that so long as he is President we won’t lose in Iraq. Which means he’ll hand the mess over to the next administration and then claim they did the losing. It’s a transparent ploy that some people will buy into. Yet, I’m convinced he honestly believes what he says. He can’t cop to the real truth because he has so deluded himself into believing an alternative truth, one that is impermeable. He doesn’t have the guts to face the real truth.
Finally, God is on his side, he says. He is doing God’s work. Since we’re not in on his private conversations with God we have to take his word for it. Since we don’t have access to all the secret information that flows to him, from God, the Pentagon, the CIA, wherever, we should take his word for it. Do we have the guts not to believe him? The answer today is a resounding ‘yes.’ Regrettably, the answer when it really counted was ‘no.’ Shame on us for not having the guts.
posted by Dan at 9:03 AM
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